Pakistan and China have signed agreements to build a new airport and upgrade the Karakorum Highway as part of efforts to accelerate development of an "economic corridor."

The signings followed a summit in Beijing on February 19 between Pakistani President Mamnoon Hussain and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.

At the start of the meeting, Hussain, who is on his first overseas visit since taking office last summer, said: "Friendship with China is the most important pillar of our foreign policy and security policy."

The agreements signed included a preliminary accord for constructing an international airport at the Pakistani port of Gwadar.

Another was for upgrading a section of the 1,300-kilometer highway connecting Pakistan and China across the Karakorum mountain range.